Manatee shark-dragging suspect appears in court as case moves ahead

One of the three Manatee County men facing charges in connection with the infamous shark-dragging case appeared in Hillsborough County court Tuesday morning.

Spencer Heintz sat in the back of the courtroom and didn’t speak during the hearing, according to a report by WFLA.

Attorneys for the three men spoke to Judge Mark Wolfe briefly on Tuesday and set a disposition for May 1.

All three men connected to the video — Michael Wenzel, 21, of Palmetto; Robert Lee Benac, 28, of Bradenton; and Heintz, 23, of Palmetto — have pleaded not guilty to multiple charges back in January.

Each are being charged with two counts of aggravated animal cruelty, a third-degree felony, announced by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Benac and Wenzel also face one count of using an illegal method to take a shark, a second-degree misdemeanor.

The now viral video, released in July 2017, shows three men on a boat laughing and watching as the shark, which is tied on a rope, violently bobs in the water as it is dragged from the high-speed boat.

“Look it’s already almost dead,” one man said while pointing and laughing at the shark.

The clip has generated outrage nationwide and was called out by Gov. Rick Scott, who said he wanted laws to prevent “such inhumane acts.”

This story was originally published March 6, 2018 at 6:14 PM with the headline "Manatee shark-dragging suspect appears in court as case moves ahead."